The World Premiere
By Odalys Nanin
Los Angeles, CA (The Hollywood Times) 8/4/24 – This new play takes a leap of faith by following in the footsteps of the celebrated Neil Simon whose Plaza Suite, California Suite and London Suite consist of three short stories having the only common thread of the suite itself.
Ms. Bowlden pens this style of writing and creates three short plays that take place in the same luxurious honeymoon suite. Expectations are always high on your honeymoon night and what starts off as a romance turns into a reveal of the love, passion, insecurities and fears that led them to say YES!
The first couple are Evy played by Stevie Kinchenoe and Oscar played by Jerry Campisi. These two love birds remind me of the film “Fools Rush In” Evy is a soldier who is about to be deployed so they elope and try to cram their honeymoon in a severely restricted amount of time. Ms. Kinchenoe’s performance keeps this scene interesting due to her wonderful display of energy. Jerry Campisi follows her around like a puppy trying his best to please her but always falling short. The wedding was so rush that there was no time to buy a diamond ring, so he gives her a fake one that turns her skin green. These are the moments that warm your heart as the couple struggles to make this their last night special. But at the end she leaves, and he is left to wait her return in three months’ time. Cleverly set up more like a comedy than a romance this scene explores the characters fears and incomparability. Will they stay together after the three months are up? Alex Bora plays Donnie who is Oscar’s friend trying to help him out by giving him a real diamond ring he found in the lost & found of the hotel. These are the scenes that keep you interested to know what else Oscar will do to keep Evy happy.
The second couple at the luxurious honeymoon suite are Mike played by Pete Navis and Katie played by Lindsay Shelton. This is Mike’s second nuptials and Katie’s first both older and you would think wiser. But not really for who in their right mind on their honeymoon night would confess not being sure of sleeping with a striper at his bachelor party. It’s all a haze for Mike but Katie instead of getting upset tries to assure him that she knows him well enough to know that he didn’t. Nevertheless, this doubt lurks over their special night basically creating chaos for both of them. However, all is not lost because Mike discovers that the so-called striper’s panties really belong to Katie. There’s the set up and the punch. The writing is clever and the performance by both actors consistent.
The third and final scene is the strongest with a cast of young women who are believable as the true and caring friends of the jilted bride. They are zany and fun to watch as they try their best to cheer the bride played by Whitney Montgomery. Ms. Montgomery’s performance is delightful as we see her struggle with anger, sadness and sarcastic joy. The rest of the bride’s maids are Grace Neiswander who plays Meg a lesbian who wants to propose to her partner Sarah played by Piper Major. Ms. Neiswander shines in this role as the most romantic character with her display of enthusiasm and loving embraces towards her partner. Among the others are Lindsey Gentile as Tess who is pregnant, Erin Astin the best friend, Lily Weak as Libby the younger sister and Chris Periko as Jeff who plays the groom. It turns out that the groom did not jilt the bride, but the bride got cold feet and ran off. This is a bit confusing because everyone dislikes him yet he’s the victim. Love is a complicated dish of love, passion, fears, insecurities and the eternal hope that love will conquer all. Even though the writing is clever the director’s choice of placing the bed downstage center instead of upstage limits the blocking of the actors who seemed trapped to be on the bed most of the time. Regardless it’s a fun romp!
Directed by Jenna Hoffman Produced by Kelsey Dougherty for the SKYPILOT THEATRE
At 905 Cole Ave. Hollywood, Ca. 90038
Running from August 2 thru August 25, 2024, Fri. Sat. 8pm Sun, 3pm
Admission: $40 ticketing: https://www.onstage411.com/newsite/show/play _info.asp?show_id=7138
Reviewed by ODALYS NANIN for THE HOLLYWOOD TIMES 8/3/2024
